Goose Pond Fauna, And A Final Note On The Goose Pond Biodiversity Survey

I've already posted in general about the recent Goose Pond Biodiversity Survey, and in more detail about the results of our vascular plant survey, so this post will be dedicated to the fauna observed during the event.

The bird highlight for me was seeing so many Black-necked Stilts (Himantopus mexicanus) throughout the marsh communities. Aptly named for the black plumage on the backs of their necks and the long, pink legs, this shorebird species was not known to breed in Indiana until as recently as 2005. With the restoration of ~4,000 acres of marsh habitat, Goose Pond is now a hot spot for this otherwise primarily coastal species, as 19 Black-necked Stilts were tallied during the two-day survey.


In the seeded prairies, Sedge Wrens (Cistothorus platensis) were singing constantly. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get photos of the Henslow's Sparrows (Ammodramus henslowii) that were also giving their insect-like "tsilik" songs from the same prairies. Both of these grassland species are listed as State Endangered in Indiana, and without the installation of ~1400 acres of prairie on the preserve, they would not be as successful in Greene County, Indiana as they are today.


A common butterfly, Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus), has also benefitted somewhat from the restoration at Goose Pond; however, this species is widespread and often thrives in weedy old-field areas as well as prairies. If you're not watching for butterflies, this one can go undetected, as its wingspan only totals ~1 inch.


The much more conspicuous species shown below is a female Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes), which has a wingspan of 3 1/4 to 4 1/4 inches. Black Swallowtails are found throughout the eastern 2/3 of the continental United States, in all sorts of open habitats.


Thanks to Don Gorney and Sandy Belth for verifying my butterfly identifications.

The Smartweed Caterpillar (Acronicta oblinita) is a common species of open, often moist habitats throughout eastern North America. As the common name implies, larvae of this species often feed on smartweeds (Polygonum spp.), but they will also feed on a variety of other plant species including forbs, shrubs, and trees. As an adult moth, this species is known as a Smeared Dagger Moth. Identification in the field was made by Ben Hess.


One of the common dragonflies observed at Goose Pond was the Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia, aka Libellula lydia), a member of the group known as Skimmers. Common Whitetails display sexual dimorphism, as the males (shown below) and females look quite different. This conspicuous species can be found in nearly any wet area throughout the Lower 48, as well as in southeastern Canada.


Another common dragonfly found in abundance at Goose Pond was the Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis). Another "Skimmer," this species is also widespread, found in all types of wet areas throughout most of the contiguous United States and into portions of southern Canada. In the photograph below, the male Blue Dasher is shown in "obelisk" position, a posture taken to reduce the amount of surface area exposed to the sun to prevent overheating. As you can see in this Wikipedia link, the posture of the Blue Dasher below is in fact reminiscent of an obelisk.


For most of the two days, my eyes were focused on the ground, so my fauna observations were limited. However, the article below, printed in the Bloomington Herald Times, gives a nice recap of the wildlife that was observed, and of the biodiversity survey in general.

Portrait of life: Goose Pond biodiversity survey paints a picture of wildlife that call southern Indiana wetlands home
By Dawn Hewitt
7/25/2010
Who would have dreamed that bog lemmings live at Goose Pond? The small rodent is found in grassy openings in forests and forest edges, especially where sedges, ferns and shrubs grow, and not in corn and soybean fields. Somehow, the hardy little mammals survived a century of draining, plowing, row crops, pesticides, fertilizers and bulldozing during wetlands restoration.

The critter was one of thousands caught and cataloged July 16 and 17 during the first Goose Pond Biodiversity Survey. The newly restored, 8,000-plus acre state fish and wildlife area is teeming with life. The bird species the wetlands have attracted have been well documented and jaw-dropping at times. But what else is out there?

Scientists from across the state and beyond joined forces to address that question. Organized and co-sponsored by the Indiana Academy of Science and Friends of Goose Pond, 82 biologists, including botanists, ichthyologists, lepidopterists and other entomologists, herpetologists, mammalogists, ornithologists and biogeochemists went into the fields and marshes in an attempt to paint a two-day, summertime picture of all life forms present there.

While the lemming was a shocking find, many scientists were more impressed with the sheer numbers of organisms found.

“We didn’t find anything exceptional, but the abundance is phenomenal,” said herpetologist team leader Daryl Kerns, with the IAS and a biology professor at Hanover College. The school’s Rivers Institute was also a key player in organizing the event.

Goose Pond property manager Brad Feaster provided some preliminary results:
• Vascular plants: more than 400 species identified so far
• Beetles: 79 species and counting
• Butterflies: 47 species
• Moths: 41 species and counting
• Dragonflies: 22 species
• Reptiles and amphibians: 19 species
• Birds: 123 species

Many reports and final tallies are still to come from the 13 teams that were in the field that weekend. Team leaders have until Aug. 16 to submit their results, and some will spend a month sorting, identifying and counting.

The entomologists collected literally buckets of bugs that will take weeks to identify. Some set up bright lights in fields at night, and the insects dove by the thousands onto collecting sheets.

The final results will be published in the Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Sciences and will also be made available to the public. Such a list already exists for birds on the web at www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/3094.htm.

Other species likely or known to be at Goose Pond will not show up in the survey because they are dormant this time of year, or simply weren’t found on the two-day search, Feaster said.

“This one event will significantly expand our knowledge of the biota at Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area,” Feaster said.

Barbara Simpson, a member of Friends of Goose Pond and key organizer of the event, said publishing the results will encourage nature lovers to document additional species there. “It will be like an on-going treasure hunt,” she said.

Simpson said the success of the survey includes more than species tallies, but also the enthusiastic participation of scientists, students, nature lovers and volunteers, all of whom donated their time and expertise to the project, including travel expenses. In return, they got free meals and lodging, a chance to socialize with like-minded biologists, and an opportunity to explore the re-established wetlands.

Goose Pond is “well-managed for diversity, and suitable to become a world-class natural resource,” Kerns said.

Weekend Insects

While botanizing this past weekend, I ran into an array of interesting insects, including one yellow jacket that wasn't too happy to be stuck under my shirt sleeve. Below are some photos of the more docile and cooperative species that I saw.

This gorgeous fluorescent blue and black-striped damselfly is in the group called bluets. The best that I can tell, this is a Tule Bluet (Enallagma carunculata). As always, help with identification, if I'm wrong, is much appreciated. This individual was observed at Merry Lea Environmental Center, close to Bear Lake, in Noble County, Indiana. Take a gander at the look he is giving me in the photo below. I think he's had enough of me chasing him around.


At the pannes north of Miller Woods in Lake County, Indiana, I saw the female Eastern Amberwing (Perithemis tenera) pictured below. This small, orange-tinged dragonfly, which is typically less than an inch long, can be confused for a wasp because of its size and the way that it moves in flight. Males of this species don't have the spotted wing pattern that the females do, but instead have solid amber-colored wings. Eastern Amberwings are most often found over lakes and ponds.


Also in one of the pannes, I ran into this crazy creature...


Ever seen anything like it? I sure hadn't. This white and black-checkered member of the long-horned beetle family is a Cottonwood Borer (Plectrodera scalator). The pattern on this beetle reminds me of a Rorschach inkblot test. Cottonwood Borers have a body that is over an inch and a half long, with spiny antennae that alone exceed that length! As the name implies, this species relies on Eastern Cottonwood (Populus deltoides), willows (Salix spp.), and other members of the willow family (Salicaceae) for multiple stages of its life cycle. In the photos above and below, the adult Cottonwood Borer is feeding on Bayberry Willow (Salix myricoides).

Have a close look at those mandibles. It's amazing that they only eat leaves and young twigs! After mating, the female lays eggs in pits at the base of a Salicaceous tree. The larvae hatch and burrow further into the tree, feeding as they go. This process can take up to two years. The larva then pupates in a root below ground, metamorphizes into an adult, and digs its way out from the ground. Because it doesn't leave from the tree itself, it leaves no exit hole in the tree.

With colorful insects that have life cycles like this, it's amazing I am still able to focus on the plants!

A Dragon and Two Damsels

Until recently, I didn't have many photos of damselflies and dragonflies. Maybe it's just the fact that I've been in good habitat, but it really seems like these insects have been much more photogenic lately. Here are a few of the species I've seen in the past week.

While in the field in northwest Indiana along the Little Calumet River on July 9, 2009, I heard the familiar sound of a dragonfly drying its wings in preparation for flight. I turned around, expecting to see a very common species like a 12-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula pulchella), Common Whitetail (Libellula lydia), Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa), or Common Green Darner (Anax junius). But when I found the insect, it was obviously none of those. Instead, it was what I believe to be a Cyrano Darner (Nasiaeschna pentacantha). According to the books that I have, this species is uncommon in Ohio and common in Indiana, but not known from the northwest Indiana counties near the lake, where I observed it.


A bit later, a damselfly landed on my pants. For the most part, you can distinguish a dragonfly from a damselfly by the orientation of their wings when they are resting. A dragonfly rests with its wings held perpendicular to the body, while a damselfly rests with its wings above and together. There are a few exceptions to this rule, including spreadwing damselflies and a few others, that rest with their wings out, but spread apart. Another difference between dragonflies and damselflies is that the hindwings of dragonflies are wider than the forewings, but in damselflies, the hindwings and forewings are similar in shape. Damselflies seem much more difficult to identify than dragonflies. Carl Strang of Nature Inquiries has identified the damselfly below as potentially a brown-form female Blue-fronted Dancer (Argia apicalis). See the comments below for Carl's justification of this identification.

Then, on July 11, 2009 in a wet prairie at Round Lake Nature Preserve in Starke County, Indiana, a spreadwing damselfly landed on a nearby stem and posed for me. You can see that, at rest, this damselfly has its wings spread apart, but the hindwings and forewings are of similar shape. I believe that this is a male Slender Spreadwing (Lestes rectangularis). A good field character for this species, which I think I see in my photo, is the pale edge of the wingtips. Slender Spreadwings are common and widespread in Ohio, but from what I can find are only known from 13 counties in Indiana. Most of those counties are in the northeastern part of the state, and it does not appear that the species was previously known from Starke County.

Please feel free to correct me if any of these identifications are incorrect.